Can We Keep Her?
by skimmingsurfaces
Summary: Beneath a metal bench there was a moving pile of snow. Shivering, to be exact. He'd never seen anything like it, so, he did like any normal person would do in the face of the unknown. He reached out and touched it.
1. Chapter 1

The plan would have succeeded had Pinky left the television on the weather channel per request of The Brain.

Waist deep in the frigid snow, Brain fumed. He had hoped to reroute the city's water supply to use it for his giant water wheel that would generate enough power for his jumbo satellite to broadcast his mind-numbing programming that would brainwash the masses as they attempted to view their prime time specials and late night news. Then, with the world under his control, he could successfully step in as supreme leader!

Unfortunately, due to the snow, the pipes carrying the water were frozen shut. Had The Brain been aware of the anticipated snow fall hours earlier, he would have planned ahead and brought along a blow torch or even his Bunsen burner would've done the trick! But no, he glared at his companion, currently skipping around trying to catch snowflakes on his tongue. He was breathing so heavily in anticipation, however, that his heated breath melted the flurries before they could touch the muscle lolling out of his mouth. Still, his associate continued these shenanigans unperturbed.

Brain sighed, suppressing a shiver. Well, at least he'd been aware of the chill, bringing along their little winter coats he'd snatched from Pinky's Darbie and Ben dolls. The other mouse didn't seem to miss them, he preferred dressing them in rather risqué clothes that would've made Brain blush had he not been aware of the mouse's innocence and declaration that his dolls were joining the circus. Or skydiving, he could never remember which.

With the plan foiled for the night, Brain shuffled through the snow in the direction of the lab. Snow crunched behind him, reaffirming his assumption that Pinky would follow without orders. His ears flattened against his head. He remembered the coats, but the ear muffs were nestled in a drawer somewhere.

"Weeeeee!" Pinky squealed as he ran ahead of Brain, arms spread out wide as he spun around in circles. "Isn't the snow lovely, Brain? _Troz!_"

Brain huddled further into his coat, hiking up the collar around his neck. "It's sublime." He deadpanned. "Enough with your tomfoolery. Come, we must head back to the lab to prepare for tomorrow night."

"Oh, but Brain! Can't we make snow angels first? Puh-leeeeze!" Brain didn't know how he quite managed to pop up right in front of him when he had been a good three feet away when he'd last checked, yet there he was, his red nose pressed against his own and his hands clasped together.

Personal space was lost on Pinky, yet Brain had to admit in this case he didn't mind so much. The heat from his friend's breath warmed his face considerably. Unfortunately, with it came the smell of garlic fries. Pinky had gotten hungry on their way to the water pipes.

Shoving him aside, Brain continued undeterred. "No, Pinky. As much as you enjoy frolicking in this winter wasteland, I would rather spend my evening wrapped in an afghan whilst nursing a steaming cup of tea as I read T.S. Eliot by the light of the fire." The mental image reminded him of just how cold it was. He glowered, tucking his crooked tail close and folding his arms tightly across his chest.

"How about a snow mouse? Can I make a snow mouse, Brain? Can I? Oh, please, can I?" Pinky tugged on his coat, trying to get him to turn around, but Brain remained stolid. Those blue eyes were surely the size of dinner plates, his lower lip was most likely jutting out ever so slightly, and his ears would slowly wilt until they were all but touching the ground.

He didn't want to be out in this snow any longer, and just looking at that face would render him unable to achieve this desire. "No, no snow mouse tonight, Pinky." His ears twitched at the despondent wail that issued from the taller mouse. "Perhaps tomorrow, if there's time between taking over the world and the History channel's documentary: 'Dictators Through the Ages'."

"Poit! Really, Brain?" That had perked him up fairly quickly. "Hooray! I'm gonna make a snoooow moooouse!" He sang as his skipping began anew. "And I'll name him Pancake!"

The Brain rolled his eyes as he trudged along after his friend, blocking out the unintelligible verses of "Pancake the Snow Mouse" Pinky was making up on the spot. He focused more on his warm vision. Once the numbness in his fingers and toes faded, he could concentrate on drawing up plans for tomorrow night, provided that Pinky didn't drag him into some other inane activity. Watching Pinky launch himself off the ceiling fan into the wall was only amusing the first four times, any that followed that spurred on concern for the mouse's remaining brain cells.

It was then that he realized he could no longer hear Pinky singing.

"Pinky?" He called out, cupping his frigid paws around his mouth as his eyes searched the empty white streets. "Pinky! Where are you?"

"_Narf!_ Over here, Brain!" Pinky waved from his perch on the top of a garbage can.

Brain groaned, it was going to be a long journey back to the lab tonight. "Pinky, get down from there!"

"To infinity, and beyond!" Pinky crowed as he dove off the metal cylinder, landing head first in a pile of snow. Laughter emerged from the drift before he did. "Oh, that was fun! You should try it, Brain!"

Fighting back the mutinous twitch of his lips, Brain shoved his paws in the pockets of the jacket. "I'll pass." Pinky shrugged, as if to say 'your loss', and was about to clamber back up when he felt a sharp tug on his tail. "Oh no you don't."

Pinky sighed in resignation, but his disappointment didn't last for long. Soon enough his tongue was swinging about once more in search of snowflakes. "What do snowflakes taste like, Brain?"

He arched an eyebrow. "They're frozen water, Pinky." He received a blank stare in return. "They taste like gum drops and butterfly wings and magic rainbows." He drawled.

"I knew it." Pinky replied, a serious expression on his face. "Hmph, and Gerry told me they tasted like licorice and sardines."

Another chat would have to be scheduled with the gerbil; he was filling Pinky's head with more nonsense than usual. Again. "Pinky, remind me to hurt you once I can feel my fingers again."

"Okay, Brain!" He giggled, then reached for Brain's arms.

The shorter mouse leaned away, but was caught regardless. "What are you doing?"

"Warming your hands!" Pinky chirped, tugging his paws out of his pockets and rubbing them between his own.

While dolls in lingerie had no effect on him, a simple gesture of goodwill had him blushing like a schoolgirl. "No- I- Pinky, let go!" He yanked his hands out of his friend's grasp, shoving them into his pockets sullenly.

Pinky blinked at him, perplexed by his reaction. "But you said your hands were cold."

"I did nothing of the kind! Those words never passed my lips." He snapped, stomping through the snow as he willed the redness away from his cheeks.

"Well… poit. Wasn't it implied?"

Brain froze in his tracks. Since when did Pinky understand implications? He spared him an over-the-shoulder glance, his blue-eyed companion twisting his tail in his paws where he stood knee-deep in the snow. The cold didn't appear to have any effect on him. Though after careful scrutiny, Brain spied the tremors travelling up the lanky legs.

The sooner they got back to the lab, the better. "Enough of this. Let's just go home." Brain quieted his stomping, until he was satisfied with the sound of crunching snow behind him.

He actually dared to hope they'd make it back within the hour, when he became aware of Pinky's absence yet again. Growling to himself, he backtracked their path, following the larger set of footprints in the snow.

#

Now, Pinky knew The Brain wanted to get home lickity-split and, since he didn't want his friend to be cold, he wanted to get home too. However, as he admired the pretty sight of a snow coated city, movement caught the corner of his eye. Overcome with curiosity, Pinky wandered over to investigate.

Beneath a metal bench there was a moving pile of snow. Shivering, to be exact. He'd never seen anything like it, so, he did like any normal person would do in the face of the unknown. He reached out and touched it.

Some of the snow fell away to reveal more white. White fur. Brushing off more of the snow, Pinky gasped as his gaze fell upon a tiny mouse, curled up in an attempt to block out the cold. After scanning the area for any signs of a parent, Pinky slipped off his coat and made to wrap it around the baby.

Startled by the sudden motion, the mouse scooted away, staring at him with wide, pink eyes. Her chest heaved as she huffed out quick pants of air, trembling even more so. Pinky smiled, crouching down in the snow to be at eye level with the baby. This seemed to work, so Pinky scooted a little closer. When the mouse didn't dart away, he tried once again to wrap his coat around her.

Pinky scooped her up into his arms. "There, there, little baby snow mouse. That's much better now, isn't it? _Narf!_"

"Pinky!" His ears perked up as he heard Brain approach. "Have you any sense left at all in that hollow shell you call a head? Put your coat back on, you'll freeze!"

He felt plenty warm as he recognized Brain's "I'm-mad-and-worried-but-more-worried-though-I'll-try-to-hide-it-with-mad" tone. He giggled as he spun around. "Looky what I found, Brain!"

Pinky lifted his arms to show off the bundle he cradled, but Brain appeared less than impressed. "That's your coat, Pinky."

"No, no, no." Pinky grinned, shaking his head with each 'no'. "It's what's _in_ my coat, Brain!"

Plenty wary of whatever it was Pinky picked up, Brain approached his friend with caution. Pinky leaned down so he could see better, momentarily distracted by the shiver of Brain's right ear. He heard the intake of breath from the shorter mouse, drawing Pinky's attention back to the baby.

"Pinky…" Brain's mouth was making a bunch of floppy motions, as if he were a fish. Pinky snorted back his laugh and pink eyes raised to meet his.

"Isn't she cute, Brain?" He cooed, rocking her back and forth enthusiastically. Looking down into her little face, she appeared startled by all that was going on around her. To cheer her up, he started making silly-willy faces at her. Her eyes lit up and a smile spread across her cheeks. "Aww, she likes me, Brain!"

"Pinky!" The Brain snapped, grabbing hold of Pinky's nose and dragging him down to eye level, albeit careful of the child he was carrying. "Where did you find her? We must return her to her mother at once before you are charged with kidnapping! You should know better!" He scolded firmly. "You can't just go grabbing little children off the streets!"

His blue eyes started to water. "But Brain-!"

"Pinky, stop! Now, where did you find her?" Brain crossed his arms and tried to tap his foot impatiently, though the effect was lost considering his entire lower half was buried in snow.

Shifting the baby's weight to one arm, he pointed to the bench with the other. "Right here, Brain. There's nobody else around."

Much to Brain's malcontent, Pinky was right. They were the only living beings as far as he could see. Moving past mild irritation at this point, Brain turned to glare at his friend for getting them into this mess. It lost some of its heat as he observed the silly faces Pinky made at the baby, even going as far as to rub his nose against hers. Brain slumped, bringing a paw to his forehead. Why him?

"Pinky, stop messing around. This child must have a mother somewhere. Perhaps they became separated in the snow." Brain pondered, grasping for some plausible explanation for the abandoned baby mouse. "Come, we'll take her to the police station. They'll know what to do for her while they search for her parents."

The face Pinky made was quite similar to the one he made when he found out Simon Cowlick was leaving American Icon. Disappointment. "Oh, but Brain, would a good family really leave their baby out here all on their own? Poit."

"I'm almost positive it wasn't intentional, Pinky." Brain rationalized to comfort his friend, and convince him to drop off the child in someone else's care. "Children get lost quite frequently, it's almost a rite of passage for a parent to have a moment of irresponsibility and lose track of their offspring." Pinky still appeared unconvinced. "The police will have doughnuts and hot chocolate for her."

"Really? _Narf!_ That sounds like a great place! Let's go!" For a moment, Brain feared he'd drop the bundle in his manic haste, but the lanky mouse surprised him. Pinky somehow knew to shift his grip just enough so that the baby wasn't jostled too much by his prancing.

Brain walked beside him, after offering Pinky the scarf he had tucked around his neck. Merely because it made him colder just looking at Pinky's exposed fur. Since his companion was still cradling the bundle, he simply lowered his head and let Brain wrap the scarf around him.

"Thanks, Brain!"

#

Pinky changed his mind about the police station. There were no doughnuts or hot chocolate!

They also didn't seem to take the issue very seriously.

A poor, baby mouse had lost her family and all the mean old policeman did was laugh and say he'd call the animal shelter and see if they needed any food for their snakes. Luckily, Brain dragged the two of them out without another word, which relieved him somewhat. He knew Brain didn't want the little mouse around, but at least he didn't want to feed her to a snake! That was just unsanitary.

"How barbaric!" Brain grumbled, decently affronted by the remark.

Pinky nodded in agreement. "And intolerant! _Narf!_"

"Indeed." The shorter of the two shoved his paws in his pockets, shivering a good amount now. His eyes roved over his taller friend, his attention lingering on the complete lack of protection he had from the elements.

Pinky was valiantly, or just didn't notice, attempting to conceal the fact that the cold was affecting him. But constant tremors ran along his limbs and up his back. And if he forgot to clamp his mouth shut, his teeth chattered something awful. Brain's brow creased in contemplation. It was completely irrational to remain outside any longer, even if that meant carting the babe with them.

"W-w-what do we do now, Brain?" Pinky forced out between his teeth, hugging the swaddled infant close to his chest.

Brain sighed and took hold of Pinky's arm, leading him towards the lab. "We go home, Pinky. From there we will warm up and then decide what to do about our company."

This seemed to perk Pinky up enough to get him moving faster towards Acme Labs. Brain kept up sufficiently, for he was just glad the lab wasn't too far from the police station.

* * *

As if "Brinky" and "Two Mice and a Baby" weren't enough, right?

Now they're stuck with another baby, egad! Whatever will they do?


	2. Chapter 2

Pinky shook out his fur like a dog, on all fours spraying snow everywhere. The Brain lifted his arms to shield himself from the onslaught of moisture, considering himself unscathed in the end. He draped a towel around Pinky's shoulders, as the taller mouse had plopped down in front of the TV rather than effectively dry himself off, and proceeded to rub him dry. It annoyed him that his companion didn't think to do this himself, but if no one dried him then Pinky was sure to catch a cold.

He rolled his eyes when Pinky burst into a fit of giggles as he toweled off his sides. "Braa-aain! Stop! That tickles!"

"If you thought to dry yourself off, then maybe I wouldn't have to." He returned, not ceasing his actions in the slightest. In fact, he purposely dug his fingers into his sides a little harder, eliciting more laughter as Pinky squirmed both away and towards him. Brain didn't fight so hard to suppress the smirk that threatened to turn up his lips, after all, no one could see him.

"I can do it! I can do it!" He snorted through his laughter, rolling onto his back once Brain got to drying his tummy. "Narf!"

Brain tossed the towel onto Pinky's head once he sat up again. "Have at it, Pinky. I'm going to find another blanket."

"We need to find a bed for Baby Snow Mouse too!" Pinky called after him, pushing the towel all around his head before letting it slide off. His fur stuck up every which way.

Heaving a sigh, Brain set about fixing Pinky's fur, lest it actually dry in that tangled mess. "Pinky, she's not staying that long."

"I know." He attempted to keep the sadness out of his tone, but Brain knew his friend well enough to pick up on it. Of course Pinky would become attached within seconds of finding her. "But we can't just put her on the floor, it's rude. She's our guest!"

"She can sleep on our bed." Brain deemed Pinky's fur satisfactory, but continued to let his fingers run through the soft, slightly damp strands.

They were quickly dislodged when Pinky shook his head vehemently. "Egad, Brain! No, we can't do that! We could roll over in our sleep and smooosh her!"

He sounded so completely horrified, Brain didn't press the issue. "Fine, then. If you don't want to "smoosh" her, then you can assemble a bed for her."

"Yay! Thank you, Brain!" Pinky leapt up, completely forgetting about the TV, and skipped away.

Hopping on the remote to turn off the screen, Brain set about collecting the towels and procuring a blanket for himself for he was still chilled to the bone. As he passed their cage, he couldn't help but peer inside. The baby was still wrapped up in Pinky's jacket, sleeping in the middle of their matchbox bed. He shook his head. Once he was warmed up, he'd get on the computer and proceed to design fliers for the missing baby. Tomorrow he and Pinky could post them around town and hopefully there'd be a quick response.

Something about her intrigued him. Even though she was nothing more than a squirming, babbling infant, there was something akin to awareness in her eyes. Something beyond what primitive non-gene spliced rodents typically displayed. The Brain shook his head. It was a possibility, finding a gene spliced mouse out in the city, but not very likely one. Her parents would have had to have been altered, for she was too young to have undergone such a procedure already.

Of course, this only made his plan more feasible. With parents capable of cognition, they would understand the signs and know where to find and pick up their daughter. However, there was the chance that the infant came from more primitive mice than they. It didn't even occur to him until they'd left the police station, but if she was from primitive field or sewer mice, she could not ever be returned to her family. His and Pinky's scents were on her now, her family wouldn't recognize her. He shuddered as he recalled what he read about field mice and their young. If a foreign scent interfered with the child's scent, then the child was eaten, so as to save the rest of the litter.

Simply barbarian.

"Brain! Oh, Brain!" His attention shifted as his exuberant cagemate hollered and waved him over.

Brain's shoulders hunched over. "What is it, Pinky?"

"Looky! I made a bed!" Pinky cheered, proudly holding up half a walnut shell.

Arching an eyebrow, Brain strolled over to better examine the invention. The hollowed out half of the walnut shell had been stuffed with paper and blankets. Quite inventive, The Brain had to admit inwardly, refusing to verbally praise Pinky's creation.

"It even rocks like a cradle! Zort!" He added, setting it on the ground and nudging it slightly. It wobbled more than rocked, but Brain wouldn't quibble with him.

"Fascinating, Pinky." With a nod, he stiffened as a shiver wracked his body. He really needed to get those extra blankets.

Pinky tilted his head. "Are you still cold, Brain?"

"My body temperature is still a few degrees short of what I desire it to be, yes." He grumbled, folding his arms across his chest. "So if you'll excuse me-"

"I'll make you some tea!" Pinky clapped his paws together, hopping from foot to foot. "That'll warm you right up! Poit!" With that he dashed off towards the kitchenette.

Brain blinked at his friend, touched by the offer. While Pinky may have the lowest IQ of any creature he'd ever come across, he certainly knew how to surprise him. Draping a blanket around his shoulders, and discarding the damp towels off to the side, he went over to boot up the computer. He could get started on those fliers while Pinky prepared his tea.

When the thimble full of steaming liquid was placed beside him, he thanked his cagemate as he cupped it between his paws. Bringing it close to feel the heat against his face, he paused as he detected a hint of lemon and honey. Pinky only put those in when he wanted something... or if Brain happened to be in a particularly foul mood. He glanced over at Pinky, who had set down his own thimble of tea in favor of rocking the baby mouse.

"Baby baby baby!" Pinky sing-songed, giggling when the little mouse grabbed his nose with her tiny paws. "Narf!"

"Don't jostle her too much, Pinky." Brain warned, catching his associate's attention.

He nodded rapidly. "Oh, I know, Brain! I can hold a baby! I took care of Romy, didn't I?"

At the mention of their... son, Brain drummed his fingers along his arm. "Pinky, Roman Numeral I was a baby for all of one night. This child will not develop nearly as quickly, thus needs proper attention and care."

"Poit." Pinky's brow furrowed as he tried to comprehend what it was Brain had told him. "Are you saying that... I can't do it?"

"In a manner of speaking." Brain confirmed, resuming his formatting of the 'lost child' fliers. "Pinky, you can barely take care of yourself, let alone a small creature completely dependent on your every action."

He didn't see the frown twisting Pinky's features. "That's not true, I can so take care of myself! Just last week, I ironed all the lint balls!"

"My point exactly." Brain deadpanned, clacking away at the keyboard only pausing to sip at his tea. "In any case, it's a moot point. She'll not be staying long, one night in your care shouldn't cause any lasting detrimental effects. Once we return her to her parents, we can return to our plans to take over the world!"

Pinky 'hmmph'ed, turning his back on Brain while continuing to rock the baby from side to side. "She'll be just fine. I'll take very good care of her."

"Of course you will." The smaller mouse replied, more automatic than anything else.

Pinky's ears drooped. He could do it, despite what Brain said, he had done very well with Romy! He raised him on all the right things, Pat the Bunny was one of the most acclaimed of children's stories and Romy was so smart, he was able to apply what he read to real life. He figured they must have done something right, him and Brain. If he did it once, he could do it again.

The little girl mouse started to whine, the sound going straight to Pinky's heart. Her big, pink eyes filled with tears and her lip quivered. "Oh no, Baby Snow Mouse! Don't cry!" Pinky bounced her a little faster, but that only made her more upset. "Egad, what's wrong?"

She was incapable of answering, her keening just got louder. He glanced over his shoulder nervously, though Brain hadn't yet seemed to notice. Romy had never cried, he'd been a very easy-going baby, or rather he was either all happy and smiles or all scowly and grumpy. But still. Pinky was at a loss of what to do in the face of tears.

"Don't be sad, baby." He tried pleading with her. "Just say 'narf'!" He sang a little bit of his favorite song, and for the moment it seemed to work. She perked up whenever he uttered the nonsensical word, but every time he stopped she'd get upset again. "Uhm... oh, I know! Maybe you're hungry! Zort! Oh, I am good at this!"

Pinky carried her back into the cage and set her in her walnut bassinet as he dashed off to procure food pellets. To his dismay, he found that she didn't have teeth with which to chew them up. The food pellets were essentially inedible. Still, he did not let that deter him. Dashing off to the kitchen, Pinky paused to pick up a clean pipette the scientists used to move tiny drops of liquid.

The baby fussed some while he was away, but he managed to get back before any full-blown crying erupted. The pipette had been filled with warm milk, it was just as easy as making tea, and he held it up to her lips. She latched on immediately, sucking down as much of the milk as her little body could handle. It was still half full when she finished, so Pinky set it aside to use later, and picked her up again. This time he held her upright, her chin resting on his shoulder as he patted her back.

She sighed happily and Pinky's heart soared. He could definitely do this. He'd show Brain, impress him, then maybe he'd let her stay!

#

More than sufficiently warmed from the inside out, Brain rolled up his set of fliers he'd printed and stuffed them in the sardine tin. He stretched out his arms high above his head, working the kinks out of his neck and back from sitting hunched over the keyboard for a good part of the night. Approaching the bed, ready for some rest, he stopped as he caught sight of Pinky.

The taller mouse sat perched on the edge of their bed, leaning back on his elbows as he rocked the walnut shell with his foot. His gaze was focused on the sleeping baby, tired and half-lidded, but a certain degree of peaceful contentment shone through that Brain didn't often see in his friend. Pinky hummed softly, it sounded vaguely reminiscent of a rather slowed down version of that ridiculous cheese song he loved belting out from time to time.

Brain detected a sensation similar to that of fondness bloom in his chest as he watched the other two mice for a moment, but it fled in the face of annoyance. They didn't have time for a baby, they barely had time to raise their own clone! Rolling his eyes, he tugged back the covers on his side of the bed, alerting Pinky to his presence.

"All ready for beddy-by now, eh Brain?" Pinky asked, not a trace of the hurt feelings he'd displayed earlier.

At times, Brain was grateful for his friend's lack of an attention span. "Yes, Pinky. I'm taking advantage of our botched plans for this evening to catch up on some sleep. I advise you to do the same."

"Aye, aye!" Pinky saluted him with the wrong hand, then bent over to steady the walnut cradle. "Sleep well, little mousey-mouse mouse." He whispered, pressing a kiss to her forehead as she shifted in her sleep. "Naaaarf."

Sitting upright in bed, Brain rolled his eyes, watching as Pinky ducked under the covers by the foot of their bed. He wriggled up towards him, a bump in the sheets, until his head popped out to land on the pillow next to him. "Was that fun?" He deadpanned.

"Oh, yes!" Pinky giggled, cuddling up close to the smaller mouse. "It's like exploring a big, squishy, soft cave!"

"I'm sure it is." Brain sighed, fixing the blankets around the two of them until he was satisfied with their coverage. "Tomorrow you will post the fliers around town, Pinky, while I formulate a plan to take over the world that does not require us to leave the lab. Should the child's parents come about, I want to be certain that we are present to deliver her to them. Understand?" He rolled onto his side to face Pinky, not comforted by the look of despair that crossed his companion's face. "Pinky..."

"Can't we keep her, Brain?" Pinky asked softly, his blue eyes wide and imploring.

Brain snorted. "She's not a pet, Pinky, you can't just decide to raise a child on a whim. She needs to be with her own family."

"But we could be her family! Poit!" The hope glistening in his gaze made Brain feel a little queasy. When Pinky didn't get a response, he scooted a little closer. "What if her parents didn't... didn't want her, Brain?"

To think such a thought crossed Pinky's flighty mind caught Brain off guard. It was a very real possibility, but even he didn't want to entertain the idea just yet. "That's preposterous, Pinky. Babies are designed to be optimally cute and evoke protective instincts in adults. This one here is much too adorable to have been abandoned by her parents."

It seemed to have worked. Pinky appeared slightly more cheered up, but clearly the thought of having to give her away still ate at him. Brain closed his eyes, cursing his attachment to this trusting, loving creature, and wrapped his arms around him to provide what little comfort he could.

Pinky hugged him back, trying to hide his sniffles while Brain gently patted him on the back and attempted to ignore the pang of guilt in gut.

#

An aggravating screeching sound assaulted his ears. He rolled over with a groan, attempting to bury his face against the source of warmth that slept soundly beside him. Only to find it wasn't there. Blearily blinking open his eyes, The Brain stared at the empty space where his friend should've been. His mind desperately fanned away the cloud of sleep, but it slowed down his mental processes nonetheless. He turned towards the piercing clamor instead.

Pinky paced the length of the cage while rocking the squirming baby mouse in his arms. He blew into her ear gently, making a 'shhh' noise, and she began to settle. The wails became little more than hitched hiccupping, still annoying but much less taxing on the ears.

Brain huddled back down under the covers, the sheets shifting noisily. Pinky looked over at him, wide awake despite it being such an ungodly hour. He smiled at Brain, not breaking eye contact as he bounced the baby. His reply was a simple grunt; not angry, but certainly not pleased that he'd lost his valuable heat source. When Pinky didn't respond, Brain's ears flattened against his skull.

"Pinky..."

"In a minute, Brain. She's lonely."

The Brain did not pout, most certainly not, but he was tired and his usual brand of annoyed sulking wasn't up to par. He turned his back to Pinky, too tired to be embarrassed by the knowing grin the other mouse sported but still capable of being put off by it. His ears twitched as he listened to the sound of Pinky soothing the baby back to sleep. Pink eyes drifted shut, sleep closing in on him. He managed to stave it off until he felt the dip in the bed followed closely by Pinky brushing up against him.

"Sleeping, Brain?" Pinky whispered, his breath fanning his ear.

"Mmm..."

Brain's frown deepened as Pinky giggled quietly, but the creases in his brow smoothed out as he felt a light touch to his forehead. A kiss. "I love you, Brain."

The three mice slept through the rest of the night.

* * *

Oh please, Brain! Please let Pinky keep her!  
He's such a good mommy~

The whole gene spliced-field mouse thing occurred to me halfway into this chapter lol, but she is genetically altered for the purpose of this story, having come from genetically altered parents who ran away from the lab some time ago. Pinky and Brain don't know them though, they were in a different testing area of the lab.


	3. Chapter 3

Pinky made googly-eyes at the baby, sending her into a fit of giggles. He cooed over her, scooping her up into a spinning hug. Once he got too dizzy to continue, he held her up to his eye level and rubbed his nose against hers. She squealed in delight, then grabbed onto his ears and tugged.

"Look, Brain! She's tugging on my ears just like you do sometimes! Narf!" Pinky tried to get his friend's attention, but Brain was busy constructing a harness for Pinky to wear as he put up the fliers. He needed something to carry both the papers and the baby. "Ow! Oh, dear. Poit. That's a little too hard, baby."

"Pinky, hush." Brain snapped, his patience worn thin. Pinky had been playing with the child all day, while still taking care to hide her from the scientists. Brain shuddered at the thought of what those ridiculous humans would assume if they saw a new, baby mouse in their cage. He held up the harness, it appeared decent enough. "Put this on, Pinky, then you'll go out and try to locate her parents, understand?"

"Right-o, Brain!" Pinky saluted, holding the baby with one arm wrapped around her middle. Brain eyed this position warily, one wrong move and she'd overbalance, falling to the ground and landing on her head most likely.

But she didn't fall, Pinky's grip was secure enough. He set the mouse down and let Brain help him strap the contraption on over his winter coat. Brain gave a few experimental tugs before picking up the child, holding her under her arms and as far from him as possible, and attaching her to Pinky's chest. With that done, he popped the rolled up flyers into the container on Pinky's back.

"Now, make sure you put these up in noticeable places." The Brain instructed, sticking a roll of tape around Pinky's neck. "And try to refrain from folding them into 'pretty little birds', there are at least three dozen copies, and while that may be a bit excessive, we need to cover a lot of ground. Can you do that, Pinky?"

"You can count on me, Brain!" Pinky giggled, the baby on his chest laughed also.

Brain rolled his eyes, as if one incoherent, babbling mouse wasn't enough. No wonder Pinky got along with her so well, he wasn't that far ahead of her development-wise. "Keep an eye on her as well, and don't remove her from the harness. You'll never be able to get her back in on your own, you need two pairs of hands to properly strap her in."

"Don't take her out of the dingle-majigger! Got it!" Pinky skipped off towards the window, waving his arms around wildly.

Brain watched with some interest as he stopped to massage his arms for a moment before resuming his happy frolic. He'd been holding the baby almost nonstop since they'd found her, her weight must have been taxing on her arms. While not something he'd willingly do otherwise, he supposed he could carry her around a bit when they returned to give Pinky's arms a reprieve. Only because he needed his friend at his best to assist him with his plans, yes, of course.

As the two mice left, Brain relished the quiet and sat down to draw up some plans for the night.

#

Pinky sang to himself, and the baby, as he danced around in the snow. They twirled and whirled, only pausing to tape up a flyer or two along the way. He blinked up at one he just taped to the base of a power line. It read:

**Found Infant Mouse. Female. Approximately one week old. White fur, pink eyes. Discovered in downtown on the corner of Main and Eleventh St. If she belongs to anyone, please come to ACME LABS and see The Brain regarding her.**

Pinky sighed, his breath forming a cloud. The little mouse giggled and reached up to swipe her paw through it. Pinky blew more puffs of breath on her as he continued trekking through the snow. "It's just not fair. Finders keepers, right? Narf! They shouldn't have lost you anyway!" Pinky declared, indignant as he raised a fist above his head.

Over the course of an hour, he put up most of the posters. He debated on hiding some of them, but the thought of all Brain's hard work going to waste kept him from doing so. The cold and guilt sent him back in the direction of the lab. He'd started thinking bad thoughts and needed something to distract him from them, like the TV or his wheel. For as he looked at the last poster he put up, he'd hoped that her parents wouldn't come. And that wasn't very nice at all.

#

Several days passed with no appearance of the child's parentage.

The Brain puzzled over this development as he poured over his seventh fool-proof plan for world domination that he'd created since Pinky found the baby. He did not trust to leave the two of them alone in the lab, Pinky moreso than the baby, and he also required Pinky's assistance for a good deal of his ideas. Bringing an infant along would hinder them, not to mention put her in a considerable amount of danger. There were few, if any, schemes where they emerged unscathed.

But confining themselves to the lab was becoming tedious. They could only carry out so many plans without stepping foot outside. After the first three failed spectacularly, Brain deduced that he was only wasting their time with these schemes, and focused on devoting his full attention to masterful schemes, even if they took place outside the lab. He could wait a night or two to take over the world... maybe... well, he'd been fine the first night, but on this present night, he was growing increasingly aggravated.

Pinky's uncontrollable laughter rang in his ears, disrupting his train of thought. He glanced over towards the cage, the pair of simple minded mice had been playing in front of it last he'd checked. Pinky was sprawled out on his back, tongue lolling out as he smiled up at the baby. She was balanced on his feet, his legs straight up in the air, bending down to let their noses touch before sending her up again.

How tragic to be so terribly amused by such a thing.

Although, he had to admit, it was nice for Pinky to have someone to play with. It kept him out of his hair while he pondered and also kept him from making too much noise. The laughter he could handle, to an extent. Still, it was not reason enough to even entertain the idea of letting the child stay should her parents never come calling. Pinky could play with her, yes, but being a good playmate didn't make a good parent.

The Brain refused to acknowledge that his companion had done much more than simply play with her. Pinky single handedly took up all the tasks of a parent. He fed her regularly with his makeshift bottle, he rocked her to sleep, bathed her, and he did it all with a smile and a 'narf'. Shaking his head, he suppressed a growl. Just because he could do it now didn't mean he wouldn't get bored or distracted later on. Pinky's knack for distraction was uncanny.

The only reason that it hadn't occurred with Roman simply came down to the fact that their clone had developed rather quickly and didn't require as much mothering as Pinky seemed willing to give. His heart sank a little as he recalled how completely despondent the taller mouse had been after Roman left, surely the same would occur this time around.

Brain turned to watch the pair once more, Pinky was standing up and hugging her tightly to his chest. This could not go on any longer, he was getting too attached. "Pinky, come here."

"Yes, Brain?" Pinky skipped over, smiling bright and looking to his friend for instructions as he held on to the little mouse. "You know, I came up with some really good names! Like Pocket! And Gooseberry! Or Cheese! I love cheese. Zort! But then I might get confused between her and the food..." Pinky scratched his head until Brain bopped him on the head with his pencil. "Poit! Ahahaha, good one, Brain!"

"Cease the movement of your mouth, Pinky. The sounds it's emitting are disturbing." Brain grumbled. When Pinky did so, he continued. "To address your concerns, no. I told you, no names." Pinky had been attempting to name her all day, Brain was growing weary of having to continuously explain it to him. "I called you over here because I think you need to take a break."

"Why would I want to take something that's broken?" Pinky inquired, his nose suddenly yanked down by Brain.

"You're going to stop taking care of the baby for now and go run in your wheel or watch TV or some other 'fun-fun silly-willy' inanity. You understand?" He instructed carefully, even taking the time to use Pinky's colloquialism.

Pinky's eyes screwed up as he gave it a once over. Or possibly a thrice over, knowing him. "Oh, no, Brain. I can't. If I don't take care of her, who will?"

Brain released his grip on his friend's nose and gestured to himself. "I'll take over the responsibilities of her care for the evening. You're becoming too enamored with her, some time to yourself would behoove both you and myself for when the time comes to bestow her upon her family."

"Bu-but, haven't I been taking care of her real good?" Pinky held her close to his chest, angling her away from Brain. "I didn't mess up or anything!"

With a sigh, Brain placed his hand on Pinky's arm. "You've been doing a splendid job, Pinky. Now it's just time to play by yourself for a little while."

Blue eyes glanced between the baby and The Brain, but finally he handed her over. "Okay, Brain. Troz. I'll be right over in the wheel if you need anything."

"I'm well-aware of how to locate you, Pinky." Brain rolled his eyes, adjusting the weight he now carried to make it as less annoying as possible. "Not that it will be necessary."

"Bye bye now!" Pinky waved at the little mouse and gave her head a kiss before Brain shooed him away.

If Pinky could get back to a semblance of his normal routine, perhaps the parting would not be as painful. However, this now left him with quite the distraction. Brain held her up to eye level to examine her. Her pink eyes stared at him curiously, not used to being held by anyone other than Pinky. He raised a brow, slightly impressed that she could recognize a change in caretaker. Perhaps there was hope for her feeble mind yet.

He dismissed that notion when she reached out and squeezed his nose in her tiny fist. After dislodging himself from her grip, he scowled at her which only served to send her into a fit of giggles. "I fail to understand the source of your amusement. Pinky's influence must be responsible."

She simply smiled at him, then waved her pudgy little arms up and down. "Bah!"

Raising a brow, Brain stared at her quizzically. "'Bah'? What is that? No doubt another nonsensical syllable Pinky has created."

He set her down on the counter top, leaving his hands free to make notes on his growing list of plans for world domination. When he looked back up to check on her, she was no where to be found. His eyes grew wide and he panicked momentarily. You couldn't just go around losing babies, though he had no idea this little rugrat was mobile, Pinky never put her down. Luckily, she hadn't gone far. She'd crawled over to a nearby beaker, captivated by her reflection. She attempted to sit up, to get a better look at herself, but could not compensate for the weight of her head and began to topple backwards. Brain placed a paw at her back and nudged her upright.

"While Pinky may benefit from bops to the head, you would not handle such a blow quite as well." He advised her, despite knowing she had no idea what he was saying.

Certainly enough, she clapped her paws together and laughed, then pointed at their reflections. "Bah!" She cheered.

"Yes, of course." Brain rolled his eyes before scooping her up. "You can play with the shiny toy later." It was just as bad as dealing with Pinky. He was even more determined to be rid of her as soon as possible. He couldn't be expected to take care of them both! The world would never be conquered with both beasts distracting him endlessly. Plopping her down in front of his blue prints, he sat behind her to keep her from tumbling backwards again. "Now stay."

She listened for a second, until she decided to tilt forwards instead. Brain growled, grabbing her around the middle with one arm and holding his graphite in the other. While not his preferred method of working, as he had to keep a wiggling baby from disturbing his writing, it served as a temporary solution. However, only a few minutes into his work, he sensed eyes on him.

Brain sighed; he appreciated Pinky's silence, but he was well-aware the taller mouse loomed behind him. "Pinky... what did I say?"

"Poit..." Since he'd been found out, Pinky strolled up beside Brain, his hands clasped behind his back. "Sorry, Brain, but you both looked like you were having so much fun."

Brain set the graphite down and set his gaze on Pinky. "I'm working, Pinky, not having fun."

"Oh! Well, then, I'll just take the baby then so you can focus better on your world domination thingies! Zort!" Pinky perked up immediately, reached out to snatch the infant mouse from his friend, only to have his hands slapped away. "Ow!"

"Nice try, Pinky." Brain pointed to the wheel. "Now go play."

Pinky's ears wilted and his eyes became 'all wibble-wobble', it really was the only accurate way to describe this reaction, as much as Brain despised that Pinky's vocabulary was forming it's own dictionary in his head. "But... please can I sit with you, Brain? I won't be a bother! Promise!"

"You being a bother is not the problem this time, Pinky." Brain replied, though knowing his simple friend he wouldn't hold true to his promise no matter how hard he tried. He always found some obscure way to be a bother. "It's for your own good, my friend." He needed to remain firm, even if he wanted to hand the baby off to Pinky, he'd only go back to mothering her and slipping even further into his delusion that he was her parent.

"If you say so, Brain..." Pinky sniffled, dabbing at his eyes with his tail. "Will you come play later?"

"Weren't you listening, Pinky? You're not to play with her until tomorrow." He really should be used to repeating himself, but sometimes it did astound him.

Pinky twisted his tail between his paws, his brow creasing in confusion. "I know. Poit. But I was asking if you would play with me." At Brain's own perplexed expression, he continued. "Well, we haven't tried to take over the world in a while, and you've been over here and I've been over there and we haven't done anything in the same place in ages!"

It was true. Other than sleep, which Pinky didn't get much of because of the baby, they hadn't really spent much time with each other. Brain sighed. "Alright, Pinky, you and I can do something once I put her to bed."

"Oh goody!" Pinky clapped. "I'll get the checker board and the gelatin!" Pinky's strange game concoction also involved several other questionable items.

Brain glared. "We're not playing your insipid version of checkers."

"What do you want to do then, Brain? Oh, I know! Narf! Let's take a bath! Ow!" Pinky clutched his head and laughed as a well-aimed eraser conked him. Brain couldn't exactly get up in time to properly bop him with the baby on his arm.

"Please, Pinky. Not in front of children." He chose to ignore his friend's presence for now and get back to work. "We'll decide what to do with our free time at a later hour. For now, go amuse yourself elsewhere."

"Okie dokie, Brain!" But Pinky didn't leave just yet. "When you put to bed, make sure you rock her sideways first. She likes that. And read her 'Pat the Bunny'! She can't sleep without a bedtime story. And the green blanket is her favorite today, she liked the yellow one yesterday and the red one before that, but now it's green!"

Brain growled, nearly snapping his graphite in half. "Pinky! I can manage! It's a baby, not a quantum chemistry electronic molecular Hamiltonian! Procedures can be altered!" The baby giggled as he made the comparison and he rolled his eyes. "Superb. She finds my usage of 'big words' as entertaining as you do." That reminded him... "And Pinky, try not to babble your inane phrases around her. She's picking up on them already. A child's mind is like a sponge, they'll absorb anything."

Pinky scratched his head. "Whuu... I don't know what you're talking about, Brain. Sponges can't absorb an armchair."

"No, Pinky. What I'm attempting to convey to you is that your 'narfs' and 'poits' and 'egads' are worming their way into her vocabulary." Brain clarified.

"You mean she's talking?" Pinky gasped, immediately darting down to look her in the eyes. "Oh, she's all grown up! Bit small still, like a ripe kiwi."

Brain shifted her to his other arm, away from Pinky. "I wouldn't label it as talking. Though I would like to know when you started using the syllable 'bah'. Did you read that "Simon the Happy Sheep" book again?"

"No, umm, I didn't." Pinky shook his head. "And I don't say that. Poit."

"Well, she must've picked it up from somewhere. She's been saying it all night."

Pinky stood back up and shrugged. "I haven't heard her say anything, Brain. I didn't think she could yet."

"You don't usually think, Pinky. I'm sure you're just out of practice." The shorter mouse deadpanned. "Still, it would behoove the child if you tried to limit your... exuberant exclamations."

"Sure thing, Brain! Narf! I'll get right on that!" Pinky waved as he danced away. "Zort!"

Clearly he hadn't understood a thing The Brain just said. At his side the little mouse laughed, waving her arms and looking up at him. Children certainly were perplexing creatures, so easy to amuse.

"Bah!" She pointed at his notes, specifically the quick sketches he'd drawn to makes his plan easier for Pinky to digest.

"Quite." Brain sighed. This was going to be a long night.

* * *

Poor Pinky doesn't want to give up his baby snow mouse :(

But we've also got Brain bonding with the baby! Sorta... in his own special way xD


	4. Chapter 4

Unfortunately, The Brain must have jinxed it, for an hour later, he'd give anything for her ridiculous giggling and incessant babbling. Now he was stuck with inconsolable tears. Unaware of what brought it on exactly, he'd been engrossed in a stoichiometry equation, but by the time he heard her whining it was too late.

"Heavens' above, you're worse than Pinky during the season finale of The Bachelorette." He groaned, that had been a fiasco. He couldn't stop his blubbering long enough for them to implement their plan, so Brain had to resort to convincing him that "hunky, dreamboat" Rodrigo would find love elsewhere and he should just wish "cool, bad boy" Tim and Kate the best of luck. But babies could not be comforted in such a way. The Brain held the wailing infant out at arms length, observing her at a distance may clear his head. Like the saying, you can't see the forest for the trees- oh, who was he kidding? That couldn't be applied to a child, he was simply at a loss of what to do. "What has you so upset?"

She wasn't hungry, she wasn't tired, she wasn't anything! What else did babies require besides the basic, physiological needs? Roman had never been this difficult, though he suspected he had his own superior intelligence to thank for that. His influence allowed his clone to be capable of articulating himself, to an extent.

"Brain? Is everything alright?" Pinky hesitantly approached the two, he'd been keeping his distance for some time, but the crying was getting to be too much to bear.

"Yes. I have everything under control." Brain replied brusquely. He was a genius, he didn't need to resort to asking Pinky for help.

Pinky looked from the crying baby to his stressed friend. "Umm..."

"What? You think I'm not capable of calming down a child?" He snapped, patting the baby on her back as her chin rested on his shoulder. He could feel the poor creature's entire body shaking. This couldn't be healthy.

Raising his hands up in a peaceful manner, Pinky shook his head. "Oh no, Brain, I don't think that at all!"

She wasn't showing any signs of stopping. How she managed to have that much air inside a tiny body befuddled him. Brain groaned, his head was throbbing from the constant barrage of noise. "Fine, Pinky, fine. What do I do?"

"Poit. Well, first off Brain, she's cold!" Pinky beamed, pleased to be able to help.

Brain raised an eyebrow. "Cold?" Pinky nodded. "And how do you figure that?"

"Oh, it was easy! When the crying started it was her 'cold' cry, so she wanted her blanket. But when you didn't get it, it became her 'annoyed' cry. And now she's sick of crying so she's crying because of that too." He explained, as if it were obvious.

Brain stared at him for a moment or two. "You're not serious, are you?"

Without warning, Pinky was dragging Brain and the baby over to the cage, only releasing them to fetch the green blanket from the walnut shell cradle. "Of course I am!"

He handed it to Brain. The shorter mouse took it begrudgingly and proceeded to wrap her in it. She hiccuped a few times, but the breaks in her crying were reassuring. Brain frowned, still frustrated by the spasms, but then Pinky took his arms and made him tighten his grip, pushing her closer to his chest. Finally, she blinked and closed her mouth, the last of her tears trailing down her cheeks.

Brain gaped in astonishment. "How did you-?"

"She likes heartbeats." Pinky grinned, bouncing on the balls of his feet. "And your fur is so warm, Brain, it helps to keep her from being cold!"

"My fur is..." Brain was taken aback momentarily, he could feel his face heating up. "That's not the point, Pinky! How did you know that a blanket would get her to stop crying?"

Pinky laughed. "I told you, Brain! Her "I'm cold" cry! It's more wibbly than her "hungry" cry, but more high pitched than her "lonely" cry. Oh, and her "tired" cry is that waily-wail one you just heard. All her cries are different, you just gotta know what to listen for! Narf!"

Staring at Pinky as if he'd grown two heads, Brain decided next time he wouldn't bother asking. "Of course, Pinky. How silly of me." He stiffened when he felt the baby nestle into his chest, her eyes closed in contentment.

"Aww, she likes you, Brain!" Pinky cooed, clasping his paws together under his chin.

Tossing away his earlier intentions of keeping Pinky from the baby, Brain quickly shoved her into the taller mouse's arms. "Here, Pinky, it's your turn."

"But you said-"

"Nevermind what I said! I can't ponder properly with her slobbering all over and clinging to me. I require space." He stormed out of the cage, relieved to be rid of that absurd feeling that overcame him as he held the small mouse.

Pinky would be attached to the little thing no matter what Brain did to curb it, but he himself would not succumb. He could at least prevent that.

Confused, but still pleased to be allowed to play with her again, Pinky looked down at the jarred awake baby. "What's gotten into him, small-little-small mouse?" Her wide pink eyes just stared at him in return. "Maybe he finally realized his head's too big for turtlenecks. Such a shame, really." He sighed heavily, then immediately bounced back. "You know what it's time for? Helicopter game! Whee!" And the spinning began anew.

#

Using the stoichiometric equation he formulated earlier, Brain implemented it to create a reaction between two chemicals. As he observed the state of the liquids, he noticed movement in his peripheral vision. The baby mouse had padded over to his work station and pulled herself up to peer over the makeshift table he was using to set up his equipment. Only two pink eyes and her nose could be seen over the edge. Brain glowered at her and she turned her attention from the mixture to him.

"Bah!" She smiled, not even remotely aware of the dangerous substances she was near.

Stripping off his miniature gloves carefully, he picked her up and carried her further away from his experimenting. He needed complete focus, this combination of elements had the potential to allow him to rule the world! But it also had a small chance that it would explode.

"Pinky!" He called out.

Pinky came running over. "Right here, Brain!"

"Keep a closer eye on her will you? She's disrupting my concentration." He reprimanded, handing her over to him.

Yet she still kept wandering over to him throughout the night. Seven more times at least.

"This is becoming monotonous." He groaned, burying his face in his arms.

"Oh, don't be upset, Brain!" Pinky tried to cheer him up, hoisting the little mouse up in his arms again. "She just wants to be a smarty like you!"

"Or a nuisance like you, Pinky." Brain returned, glaring at his associate from his slumped position. "I'm growing weary of this predicament! The world is awaiting me, calling out for me to take it over, Pinky, and yet I'm stuck here, babysitting the two of you! I don't know how much more of this I can take."

Pinky reached out to pat Brain on the shoulder. "There, there, Brain. Why don't we all just go together? You made that nifty thingamabob to put her in, remember? I'll wear it and she can come with us and stay out of trouble!"

While appreciating the attempt, Brain knew it wasn't feasible. "Have you forgotten that most of my brilliant schemes end up being foiled by one of your blunders, resulting in us experiencing severe pain due to an explosion of some sort? No, Pinky, I'm afraid we cannot allow her to accompany us. Our only options are to sit here idly, or leave her here in the lab whilst we set off to attain global control."

"Oh, but Brain! We can't leave her all by her lonesome!" Pinky cried out worriedly. "If she cries no one will hear her!"

"Yes, a blessing." Brain muttered. "No, you're correct, Pinky. It's grievously negligent to leave behind a helpless creature." He grimaced as she yanked on one of his ears. "Perhaps, not completely helpless."

"How would she survive? She can't reach the water bottle! She's even shorter than you, Brain!" Pinky still went on lamenting, completely ignoring that Brain agreed with him. "She can't even run on the wheel! She falls through! She doesn't have a pudgy head like yours to keep her from slipping right through the bars!"

"Enough Pinky! You can stop auditioning for the Jersey Shore, they've met their lifetime quota for complete dunces." Brain berated him as he tried to pull his ear free from the child's death grip. "We're not going to leave her alone."

With a pop, he came free and toppled over. The baby laughed and clapped, while Pinky cheered up. "We're not? Oh, thank you, Brain! Brain? What are you doing all flopping around on the floor, Brain?"

"Using my back to mop up the counter." He got to his feet and brushed off his coat.

Pinky snorted. "Well, that's not very sanitary, Brain. Or effective. Believe me, I've tried!"

"I know, Pinky. That's why I've stopped." Brain took the baby into his arms, moving her so that he had a hand free and bopped Pinky extra hard on the head. The child burst into a new fit of giggles, as did Pinky. "We're going to have someone else look after her while we're gone. I can't stand being cooped up in this lab any longer, all because some pea-brained numbskulls decided to have a child despite being inadequately prepared to take care of her."

"Were you talking about me, Brain?"

"As much as it may apply, Pinky, there is one striking difference. You have a heart. Any parent who just leaves their child in the snow and doesn't immediately seek her out can't possibly own one." He handed Pinky back the baby and began to pace.

"Wouldn't they be dead then? How would all the squishy red blood move through their bodies?" Pinky asked, bouncing the baby and making faces at her.

"I don't mean literally, Pinky." The comment certainly deserved another bop to the head, but it would take too much effort at this point. He resumed his pacing. "We just need to procure a suitable caretaker for her in our absence. Someone we can trust..."

"Billie?" Pinky offered, his attempt to assist actually remained on topic.

Brain scoffed nonetheless. "Note the key word 'suitable', Pinky."

"...Is that a maybe?"

"Far from it, my friend."

"How about Gerry, then? He usually watches our plants very well."

"Please, Pinky, be serious. He managed to kill my philodendron in three days, do you know how difficult it is to kill those? You'd have to put effort into it!" Brain's fur bristled at the reminder. "No, I'm afraid he cannot be trusted to look after her properly."

Pinky rubbed the back of his neck. "Poit. Well, Brain, I'm afraid I don't know anyone else in the lab. Do you?"

Brain's pacing came to a halt. While he knew others, he certainly didn't know them well enough to ask them to babysit a baby that wasn't even theirs to begin with. "No, Pinky... I suppose I don't."

So was that it? How long were they required to wait until her parents showed up? Brain had given little thought to what they'd do if her parents purposefully left her or passed away. And if she was never picked up, how much longer would she remain with them? Now the thought filled him with panic. He could not go anymore nights without at least trying to take over the world! His heart could not endure it any longer.

Brain rammed his head into a nearby beaker. "If only her insipid parents would show up!" He punctuated his exclamation with an especially hard smack.

"It's too bad she can't just write a letter to her parents like you and I do." Pinky rubbed his nose against the baby's. "It'd be much easier to find them if they sent a letter back!"

As he staggered in Pinky's general direction, he rubbed his cranium to soothe the self-inflicted throbbing. "Oh, of course, Pinky. Have an infant write to her royal parents in their magical fairy castle, for they may as well live there since we have no method of locating them! Why couldn't you rescue an older child? One capable of speech and remembering its fami- wait." The Brain ceased his rant for a moment, the gears in his mind whirling like they hadn't in the past several days. "That's it! Pinky! Are you pondering what I'm pondering?"

"I think so, Brain. But when I said I wanted another, I didn't think it'd be like this." Pinky replied as he cuddled the baby close. "Not that I'm complaining."

"No, Pinky." Brain smacked his palm against his forehead. "Memories! Just because she can't tell us who her parents are or where she lives doesn't mean she can't remember them!"

"Really? Oh, but wait..." Pinky glanced skyward. "When I can't tell you something, it usually means I don't remember."

Brain reached up and flicked Pinky's head. "That's because your head is a black hole that sucks any and all relevance into it."

"Ohhh... like a super vacuum cleaner! Narf!"

"Yes, Pinky, exactly like a super vacuum cleaner."

"Hurrah! No dust in my ears then! Zort! Isn't that wonderful, baby snow mousey-mouse?" He giggled, rocking her back and forth.

"Pinky, pay attention! I know how to locate her parents and regain our regular evening routine!" Brain declared with more exuberance than necessary.

Pinky devoted his attention to his friend then. "What's that, Brain?"

"The same thing we do every night, Pinky, try to take over the world!"

"Oh, right! I've missed that!" He recalled. "I almost forgot, everything's been so different lately, it's got my head all scrambled."

Brain nodded. "Pinky, your head is always scrambled. Now, pay attention. Long-term memories are the key to my plan for tonight. For you see, even though infants and children have a limited attention span, once something crosses the border of short-term and long-term memory, it will stay with them for the rest of their lives."

"Zounds, Brain! But how does something do that? Does it need a passport?" Pinky wondered, scratching his head as if it would help.

Brain tapped his foot impatiently and crossed his arms. "I was getting to that."

"Oh, narf!" Pinky smiled sheepishly and waved his hand. "Go right ahead then!"

"Thank you." He folded his arms behind his back. "Short-term memories become long-term through repetition, except in your case, which is how children learn to recognize their parents. Repetition of the same facial features. This child here is already capable of that, she knows there's a difference between you and myself even if she is incapable of conveying it. If I can tap into her long-term memory, I can piece together her memories to uncover the mystery behind her heritage and return her to her home." He puffed out his chest, impressing even himself with this idea.

"Egad, Brain! Brilliant!" Pinky hopped up and down, though stopped when he noticed how dizzy it made the little mouse in his arms. "It'll be just like a puzzle! Fun-fun silly-willy!" His glee was short-lived though. "Oh, but wait... won't that mean, we'll have to give her back?"

Brain narrowed his gaze as he set about collecting a blank page and graphite to design a machine to assist him in this new project. "That's the whole point, Pinky. I've told you, we're not keeping her." He wrote up a list of the materials he'd need and handed it to Pinky. "Here, go collect these items for me while I begin constructing my memory scanner. Leave her with me, I'll find... something for her to do."

Pinky reluctantly traded her for the list. "Poit... alright, Brain. Be back in a flash!"

As he scurried off in search of the items, Brain constructed a playpen of sorts out of paperclips and set her in it with a scrap of paper, a crayon, and a piece of string. All things Pinky was quite fond of as a child... as well as now. He left her to her own devices as he embarked on his own.

* * *

Yes, my psychology minor in showing xDDDD

Believe me, I know all there is to know about memory thanks to Intro, Critical Thinking, and Cognitive Psych. Let's learn about ALL THE BRAIN THINGS!

Speaking of The Brain... he finally has a plan! Hoorah!  
Except it means saying goodbye to little baby snow mouse...


	5. Chapter 5

"Yes!" The Brain stood in wonder as he oversaw his memory scanner. "Pinky! It's complete!"

"You solved the puzzle without me?" Pinky pouted, folding his arms across his chest. "That's the last time I share my rubber band collection with you!"

Brain hopped down from where he'd been working, brushing his palms together. "No, Pinky. Don't fret, the puzzle has been untouched. I've simply finished the device that will assist us in extracting the pieces of the puzzle from the infant's mind."

"Oh, alright then. Narf!" Pinky followed Brain as he strode over to the playpen. "You can still play with my rubber bands then."

"I'm delighted." He mused, peering down at the child.

She was curled up in a ball, fast asleep, clutching the green crayon. Pinky made some sort of 'aww'ing noise above him, and even he had to admit she was very skilled in utilizing her innate baby cuteness to bend others to her will. Perhaps if he wasn't trying to get rid of her, he'd use that quality in a future scheme. He probably still could, he filed it away for later.

"Alright. Pick her up, Pinky." He instructed.

Pinky sighed dreamily. "Oh, but Brain, I don't want to wake her up! She's so cute! Poit!"

"Well, we have to move her to the machine."

"You pick her up then."

"That's ridiculous, I asked you to do it first."

"You didn't ask, Brain."

"Pinky, if you don't pick her up, I'm going to have to hurt you."

"But why can't you do it?"

"Because!"

"Because... why?"

"I don't have to explain myself to you. I just don't want to!"

Neither had noticed that their conversation had already accomplished what they didn't want to happen. The baby blinked up at them, observing their back and forth conversation quietly. Pinky had his hands on his hips and Brain mimicked the stance, or perhaps it was the other way around.

"That's not a very good reason."

"Coming from you, who's incapable of reason."

"How about we both pick her up?"

"Fine. I grow weary of this conversation. On the count of three. One..."

"Five!"

"...Two comes next, Pinky."

"Oh right, narf! Two!"

"Three." Both mice finally turned to reach into the play pen, startled to find a pair of pink eyes watching them delightedly. She laughed and clapped her hands, reaching up right back for the both of them. Pinky and Brain turned to look at each other, so close their noses touched, before Brain huffed and spun away while Pinky giggled right alongside the infant. "Just grab her so we can fire up the machine and see if it works."

This time Pinky did so without complaint, balancing her on his hip. "You haven't tried it yet, Brain? But how will you know if it's safe?"

"Of course it's safe." Brain did his best to look affronted, though he did expect Pinky to question the reliability of his creation. "I designed it with an infant in mind."

Holding her close as if to shield her, Pinky still looked unconvinced. "It won't hurt her, will it, Brain?"

The Brain took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "How about you try it first?"

"Alright! Narf!"

Brain didn't know if he should be concerned for his associate's lack of self-preservation, considering his interest in that of others, but he let it slide in favor of fixing the helmet to Pinky's head. "Give her to me, Pinky. It's probably best if you sit down."

Pinky obliged, taking a seat on the ground since the chair that connected to the machine had been built for a baby. Brain now tried to balance her on his hip, requiring complete movement of his dominant hand. He twisted a few knobs and flipped several switches. "Are you gonna make my head a puzzle, Brain?"

"It's already a puzzle to me, Pinky." He sighed, then gestured to get Pinky's focus. "Now, I need you to relax, Pinky. The memory scanner works best when the participant is at their most relaxed. Adrenaline, while it can provide quick flashes of accurate memories, also tends to tamper with what is real and what is fictitious. So do not allow yourself to become startled, Pinky, for we want precise results." He waited for Pinky's nod before continuing, even if most of this information was lost on his simple-minded friend. "A state as close to REM sleep would provide the best feedback, but that also runs the risk of letting dreams slip through to integrate themselves within a memory. So just do your best to remain calm, take deep breaths. Meditate, if you will. Are you ready?"

Pinky closed his eyes and wiggled about to get his last bit of energy out. "Ready, Freddy!"

Brain rolled his eyes, then entered the key word on his pinpad: Home. "This key word will conduct a search through your long-term memory, if it even exists, and display the memories that best match the word on this screen. You don't have to close your eyes, Pinky."

"Oh, right. Troz." Blue eyes blinked back open and watched as Brain typed in a few more entry codes and the machine began to whir. "What's the secret password, Brain?"

"Home." He replied, finally stepping back to see what would be displayed. "Our cage, or at least the lab, should be displayed. It automatically goes to the oldest memories, so it'll most like be when you first realized the lab was your home."

"Naaaarf..." Pinky crooned in awe and the screen began to fizzle. "Look, Brain!"

"Don't get excited, Pinky." He warned, shutting the other mouse up immediately. The Brain himself on the other hand did not try to curb his excitement. "Yes!"

"Pah!" The little mouse pointed at Pinky, then looked up at Brain.

He glanced down at her for a moment. "So now it's 'pah'? Trying out all the consonants?" He didn't let his attention linger, for an image materialized on the screen.

It was... it was the lab, but the focus of the memory was not on the place. Or rather, Brain did not focus on the place. Instead his gaze was drawn to a familiar looking mouse. A much younger mouse, not that much older than the one he currently held in his arms. A voice crackled through the sound system he rigged up, but it was fuzzy. He didn't notice the baby reach out and pull on a red knob, but luckily it caused no ill-effects, instead it cleared up the voice.

_"What are you doing?"_ The voice was clearly Pinky, young and with an echo, but Pinky all the same.

The mouse he was looking at seemed perturbed, but answered nonetheless. _"Reading."_

In his memory, Pinky moved forward to peer at whatever this mouse was reading, but all of was gibberish, at least that's how Pinky remembered it. _"What's that?"_

_"Biology."_ Pink eyes narrowed slightly when there was no reaction, and continued. _"It's the study of living organisms." _Brain felt a lump in his throat, he knew what came next. _"It's like the-"_

"Building blocks of life..."

_"Oh!"_ Images of blocks started to form on the page Pinky was looking at, then the mouse came back into his field of vision. _"I like playing with blocks! Can I play too?"_

This? This was Pinky's first memory of home? The Brain was vaguely aware of the rest of their conversation, he knew it had something to do with correcting Pinky, that was how their childhood went, but he turned away from the screen to observe his associate sitting a ways off. Pinky's eyes were glued to the screen, not surprising since this was almost like television for him, and he looked decently entertained.

"Oh, Brain! Look how cute you were with your little-big head!" Pinky cooed once he realized Brain was looking at him. "And already a smarty. I'm so proud!"

"Pinky... why...?" They were only memories, but Brain still felt the niggle of guilt that if he looked into his memories, he doubted his first images of home would be Pinky. More likely his home in the fields or when he was with Snowball. He knew Pinky remembered his parents though, he'd heard the (painful) story he'd told. Why weren't they his first memory?

_"Nice to meet you, The Brain!"_ The baby mice on the screen shook hands. _"Thanks, Brain!"_

_ "Wait, what's your name?"_

_ "My name? Poit. I don't have one."_ The image began to blur, transitioning to the next one in line, another instance of interaction with a younger Brain.

"Oh, this is fun!" Pinky smiled. "But why can't I see me?"

"Pinky." Brain waited for Pinky to switch his attention from the screen to him. "I... I don't-"

"You were the first one in that scary mean cage to talk to me." Pinky didn't seem bothered by this at all, if anything still as cheerful. "Where you go, I go! That's a home, right?"

It was true. Pinky would be more than happy to call a garbage can his home as long as the two of them were together, that was no surprise to Brain. It was just this scientific proof, undeniable confirmation that was beyond Pinky's mental control, forced this lump in Brain's throat to exist and his eyes to burn.

"Oh, Pinky..." It was difficult to remember that under all those 'narfs' and 'poits' and 'egads' was that little mouse who'd only wanted a friend to keep him company. Just like he had. Somehow he managed to set the baby mouse down, though he couldn't quite recall doing that, and allowed his emotions to get the better of him, just this one time.

Pinky on the other hand was startled by the sudden embrace, finding Brain's arms around his neck was not a typical occurrence, but he did not hesitate to return the hug immediately. "Brain... why're you crying? Your puzzle works! You should be happy! Unless you're gonna miss little baby mousey too?"

He supposed it didn't really matter what his child memories perceived as home, so long as he and Pinky were on the same page now. Swallowing thickly, he nodded into Pinky's shoulder. "Of course. Yes. It works." He cleared his throat, his voice still sounded too clogged. Pinky handed him a tissue from somewhere. "Thank you. Come, let's get this helmet off you and put it on her. We still need to get to her memories, that's the object of this endeavor after all."

Brain dabbed at his eyes discreetly, turning away from Pinky to peer at the screen once more. It was very fuzzy since Pinky was distracted and not in his calmest state, but still perceivable. The two of them were exchanging drawings, oh dear, he could not watch. It was bad enough when it actually happened. He went over to the machine and switched it off, then nodded for Pinky to take off the helmet.

"Do I have hat hair?" Pinky tried to smooth out his fur, but only succeeded in making it look worse. "Ta-da!" He held his arms out wide and spun around to show off his new look as Brain still tried to compose himself. Taking note of this, Pinky danced over and picked Brain up in a tight hug. "Don't worry, Brain! I still think you're cute, even though you have a big, lumpy head now! Narf!"

Brain was more concerned with breathing rather than being offended by Pinky's choice of adjectives. "I appreciate the sentiment, Pinky. Put me down now."

"'Kay!" Pinky dropped him.

The megalomaniac groaned, then felt the little paws of the baby mouse on his head as she peered down at him. She hadn't moved from where he'd put her, more engrossed with his interactions with Pinky than anything else. "Bah?"

"Don't you know any other vowels?" Brain righted himself and dusted himself off, feeling more like himself thanks to being strangled. "Pinky, get the helmet on her while I reset the machine."

"Aye, aye, Brain!" Pinky saluted, then picked up the mouse as brought her to the little seat. "There you go! All nice and comfy?" He took her stare to mean 'yes'. "Don't worry, it doesn't hurt a bit!"

The machine began to whir to life again. "Alright, Pinky, come over here."

"Okay, Brain!" He stepped away from the baby and stood at Brain's side, both of them looking to the screen to see if anything would come of it. "What if she thinks this is her home now, Brain?"

"I'm hoping that's not the case just yet. Memories of her family may still be fresh, while the ones of you and I are still fairly recent and may not have completely transitioned into long-term memory just yet." Brain explained as images started to appear. The child remained decently calm as this took place, blinking up at the screen curiously.

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Only one more chapter after this!

Pinky's memories are from Ch. 2 and Ch. 6 of my other PatB story "Friends?" I thought it'd be cute and fun to stick them in there. And Brain getting all emotional! Nawwww~


	6. Chapter 6

A lodging of some kind appeared as many voices crackled through. Wherever this was, noise was plentiful. A tall mouse, tall mainly because the vantage point was so low, hustled into view, her arms full of furless mice children, three it looked like, and hurriedly set them down at what looked like a table built for mice. There were other little mice on the floor as well. Two were fighting over a toy and another kept biting her tail.

A large male mouse entered the room, his voice booming as he spoke with his wife. In her memory, she remained focused on these two, her arms reached up towards them as if she wanted to be held.

"Brain... I think that's her mummy and daddy." Pinky whispered, as if they were actually watching a movie.

"I concur, Pinky."

"You what?"

"I agree."

"With what?"

The father looked down at her for a second, seemed as if he was going to pick her up, but was distracted by the crying of the siblings who'd been fighting over the toy. She watched him go, then looked back to her mother and repeated the gesture. The mother already had one of the furless babies from the table in her arms, feeding them. Their eyes met.

"_Be patient. Your little brothers are hungry. Go play with your sister." _The mother told her, turning away to continue nursing in peace.

But all her sister did was bite her, and that wasn't very fun. Checking to see if her father was done with her older brothers, upon looking at him she found that he was sitting down with both of them on his lap and having a talk with them. He wouldn't be done for a while. So she went to go play with the toy they'd left behind, only to have her tail stepped on as her mother crossed the room to fetch something.

The image blurred, reappearing as a snowy white street. The mice were leaving their home, a crack in a house on Birch Lane, and took a walk into downtown. The mother and father were trying to get groceries while keeping an eye on their kids, but it didn't work. The older boys were fighting again. The sister was biting her tail again. The little ones without any fur got to be carried. And she was just trying to hold her father's hand.

"_What do you want? No candy before dinner."_ Was the immediate reprimand, even though she didn't even want candy. _"Hurry along then."_

It was hard to keep up, so her mother finally carried her. It was uncomfortable having to share the space with the other kids, but it was better than struggling through the snow. Somewhere along the line she slipped, falling from her mother's arms to the ground. She rolled for a bit, then looked up after her family. Her mother didn't notice that she'd dropped her, one of the other babies had started fussing. One of her brothers noticed though. He looked right at her, then kept walking.

Crawling on all fours, she tried to keep up, but they could all walk on two legs ans she couldn't yet. It was easier for them to get through. By the time she turned a corner where she'd last seen them, her family was gone. She looked around, too young to think about searching for their trails.

A bench suddenly appeared, both Pinky and Brain jerked from this transition before Brain realized the memory had shifted. She was under the bench it seemed, and a mouse with big blue eyes was looking right at her. _"There, there, little baby snow mouse."_

"That's me." Pinky breathed, still unnerved by what he'd seen. "Poit."

Brain tore his gaze away, well-aware of how this next scene would play out. He turned off the machine and motioned for Pinky to grab the mouse from the chair. "Well... we don't know their names, but we have their address... Birch Street. It can't be... too difficult to find fellow advanced mice on a suburban street."

"But Brain..." The shorter mouse turned around to see his companion hugging the child tightly. "We can't send her back there, can we? They didn't even notice she was gone!"

"Well, I'm... I'm sure they've noticed by now, Pinky." That family, while he was in no place to judge really, didn't seem like an adequate living environment for a little mouse who had grown so accustomed to being carried everywhere. Pinky never put her down unless he was handing her off to Brain. She had probably, no, definitely received more attention from the two of them in the past several days than she had from her own family in her lifetime. "Pinky, now that we know where she belongs, it's just not our place to keep her."

"Home is where the heart is!"

Brain blinked, not expecting a true saying to blurt out of his friend's mouth. "Excuse me?"

"Home is where the heart is, Brain! And we have more heart here! We can give it to her!" Pinky pleaded, holding her up so Brain could look at her at eye level. "Puh-leeeeeze! Look at that face!"

He did look at her face. She didn't seem as bubbly as she had earlier. Confusion seemed to be the strongest emotion on her face, and as she looked right into Brain's eyes he also saw loneliness. "Mama?" She wasn't referring to him, thank goodness, but looking back at the screen. So she could talk. "Mama?"

"See, Pinky? She wants her mother." Brain attempted to reassure both Pinky and himself. Even he had some qualms with returning her, knowing this would be her fate.

Pinky whimpered in reply, fighting back tears. The baby mouse turned her head up to gaze at Pinky. "Pah?"

A light bulb went off in Brain's head. She could _talk_. He snapped to get the child's attention. "Who is this?"

She followed where he was pointing, saw Pinky, then met Brain's eyes. "Pah."

"And who am I?" Brain gestured to himself.

She smiled. "Bah!"

'Bah' and 'Pah' weren't gibberish, she was saying their names! She'd managed to realize what the sounds of their names were and was reproducing them. "Egad, Pinky... she knows who we are."

"I told you she was a smarty like you, Brain." Pinky sniffled, outright crying now. "Ooooh, we can't get rid of a smarty mouse! It's too cruel!"

Brain eyed Pinky with some trepidation, his mind was a peculiar one. "Pinky-"

"Braaaaaiiiin!"

"Stop your blubbering, you're getting your tears everywhere." Brain demanded, though not with his usual bite, as he took the child from Pinky's arms. "Think about it, Pinky- I know it's difficult for you to engage in such an activity, but I'd appreciate it if you tried- do you really believe she'd be better off here living in a lab rather than in her own home with her own parents?"

"Yes." Pinky sniffed without hesitation.

Well then, Brain wasn't quite sure how to respond to such a finite answer coming from his friend. He averted his gaze, finding himself looking into the pink eyes of the baby mouse. She smiled at him, reached out and grabbed onto his nose. Did anyone ever hold her? Before Pinky, even before him... Brain sighed, and pulled her hand away. Handing her back to Pinky, he started walked towards their cage.

"Come, Pinky, we must prepare for tomorrow night."

Pinky followed him, his abject misery short-lived and only just a little unhappy now. "Why, Brain? What're we going to do tomorrow night?"

Brain held open the door for the other two, appearing firm and decidedly determined. "The same thing we do every night, once we take down those fliers and locate a babysitter of some kind... try to take over the world-!"

He'd only just managed to finish his exclamation before being squished into a deadly hug. He was pressed against Pinky as well as the baby, both fighting for breath as Pinky cheered. "Oh, thank you, Brain! Narf!"

"Yes, well... you can thank me by putting me down." He was lowered immediately, but Pinky chose to bend over to continue the less-suffocating hug. "If I find you shirking your responsibilities however..."

Pinky shook his head, releasing The Brain to cuddle with the baby instead, who now seemed to enjoy the affection. "I won't, Brain! I don't even know how to shirk! Shirk!" He laughed, spinning around in circles. "Oh, this will be so much fun!"

Brain coughed into his hand, trying to hide the results of Pinky's infectious delight. "Pinky, settle or I shall have to hurt you."

"Okay, Brain!"

"Bah!"

Would he regret this? Most definitely. However, when the pair of childish mice looked over at him with nothing but adoration, he supposed he could put up with it for the time being. After all, he was the future world leader, he needed to get used to people adoring him for no good reason.

"Come, Pinky. If she is to live with us then she must have a suitable name. We can't go about calling her… 'baby' for the remainder of her lifespan. So, now is your chance. Think up a name to call her by." Brain instructed, clearing his throat and averting his gaze, focusing on a rather interesting smudge on the wall opposite him.

"Really, Brain? Oh, goody! Troz! Salami or Fergus or Yogurt or Teapot-" Pinky listed off several other inane names, but stopped himself as he observed the subtle cringing of his cagemate. He glanced down at the baby, squirming and smiling up at him, then decided. "Poit. Why don't you name her, Brain? You're awfully good with names!"

Brain jerked to attention, staring at Pinky in disbelief. "But… no, Pinky, I couldn't. you've been taking care of her all this time. It's only… befitting that you choose what to call her." Even if it was something both he and the child would soon regret.

Pinky shook his head, shoving the baby in Brain's arms so the shorter mouse had no choice but to hold onto her. "She's ours, Brain. Narf! You picked my name, and Romy's. You're rather good at it, please pick hers too."

With a sigh, though secretly relieved Pinky delegated this responsibility to him, and a little guilty as well, Brain acquiesced and looked the infant straight in the eyes. She stared back, then broke out into a huge grin and grabbed onto his nose. "Bah!"

"Well, she shows promise for being quite intelligent." Brain observed, balancing her on his hip as he glanced sidelong at Pinky who watched them expectantly. "Perhaps she will prove to be a suitable heir to the throne once I've taken over the world, seeing as Roman is not all that interested in the position…" Ventriloquism… "In honor of that, we shall name her Cerebral Cortex. It's both feminine and suits her aspiring intellect." He turned to face Pinky head on, taking in the blank expression on his companion's face. "Ah… we can call her C.C. for short."

"Cici! Oh that's lovely!" Pinky instantly swept the pair of mice up into his arms, twirling them about as he laughed. "Cici is a beautiful name, job well done, Brain!"

"Yes, always." Brain felt quite dizzy from all the spinning, unable to bop Pinky on the head to cease the movement for he still held onto the baby. Cici. "Pinky, put us down!"

"'Kay!" He dropped them immediately, Brain just managed to keep her from being jostled too much, though she seemed to enjoy the ride. Handing her off to Pinky, the megalomaniac made his way towards the phone. "Where are you going, Brain?"

He glanced over his shoulder, nodding for Pinky to follow. "To call Roman. I suppose it is time to inform him of this newly acquired sibling he'll have to grow accustomed to."

"Oh! Of course!" Pinky chirped, swooping Cici up and down and all around as she squealed in delight. "Romy will be so happy! Zort! He's always wanted a little brother or sister! …Or was it a dolphin?" As Brain began dialing, the taller mouse sat down beside him with the baby in his lap. "Maybe Romy will babysit for us sometimes! While we go to take over the world!"

Trying to hide the knowing smirk, for the real intentions behind his phone call were being casually observed by his friend, Brain nodded and held the receiver up to his ear. "My thoughts exactly, Pinky."

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The End!  
And now my OC is official... Egad... xDDD

All I can think is poor Romy xDDDD  
He must put up with so much.

Cici will make several appearances in my fanfics most likely, at varying ages, but mostly as about a human 7-year old (aka 4-5 months).


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